Filipino judokas will aim to surpass their previous gold medal haul as they prepare for the coming 31st Southeast Asian Games Vietnam in May.
Philippine Judo Federation secretary general David Carter said the three golds they won during the 30th SEA Games hosted by the Philippines in 2019 will be most likely duplicated by their Filipino-Japanese judokas.
The national sports association’s homegrown best bets, however, are raring to pitch in their contribution in breaking the record to help Team Philippines’ campaign gain a podium finish in the biennial event originally scheduled in November/December of 2021 in Hanoi, but was reset midyear of 2022 due to the COVID-19 surge.
“Minimum of three golds. Aside from Fil-Japanese Kiyomi (Watanabe) and the Nakano brothers (Shugen, Keishei and Kado), our local talents are also capable of winning for our country,” said the former PJF president, who after a recent election, handed the NSA reins formally to Ateneo judo club top brass and judo head coach Alexander Sulit, a collegiate judo multi-medalist during his prime.
“With president Ali (Sulit) at the helm, let’s brace for another golden moment in the judo event of the 31st SEAG in Hanoi for our country,” said Carter.
Other gold hopefuls in the national pool are Francis Teves, Alvin Mendoza, Daryl John Mercado, Bryan Quillotes, Gilbert Ramirez, Carl Dave Aseneta, John Viron Ferrer, Rick Jason Senates and Marco Tumapad in the men’s side and Helen Dawa, Jackielou Escope, Maria Jennalane Lopez and Krizzie Pabulayan in the women’s division.
Other Fil-Japanese potentials, who could also spring a couple of surprises are Shin Matsumura, Megumi Delgado, Rena Furukawa, Mariya Takahashi and Ryoko Salinas.
The national pool judo team was expected to undergo a comprehensive training for the SEAG in January at the RMSC judo gym, but was resheduled due to the latest surge of COVID-19 cases in the national capital region and nearby suburbs.
“I’m optimistic we can resume training next month after the lifting of COVID Alert Level 3 in Metro Manila, depending on the Philippine Sports Commission’s recommendation and a go-signal from the IATF (Intser-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases),” said Carter, who is also a Board Director of the Philippine Olympic Committee.